'I eat 2-3 kg of gaalis daily': PM's jibe at opposition as he attacks KCR in poll-bound Telangana

The Prime Minister said Telangana needs "a people-first and not a family-first government".

Modi, further, resorted to sarcasm, to nettle his opponents. He said, "People ask me how I don't get tired despite working very hard.  I eat 2-3 kg of gaalis (abuses) daily...The almighty has blessed me so that it gets transformed into nutrition inside me, into positive energy, which I use in the service of the people."

The Prime Minister said over the last 20-22 years he had heard all varieties of abuse against himself.

He then said those abusing him and his party BJP can get away with it but abusing the people of Telangana would cost them dearly.

Modi requested the BJP workers in Telangana to not get distracted by the abuses hurled at him by some people out of fear, superstition, and desperation.

"Such tactics shouldn't lead you astray," he urged.

"After using the choicest abuses on me, such people have exhausted their dictionary. They are doing this as they don't have anything else to give," Modi said.

Instead of losing their temper, the BJP workers should laugh at it, enjoy their cuppa of tea, and relax because the next morning the lotus (BJP's electoral symbol) would bloom.

PM Modi also accused the KCR government of hindering the Centre's development projects in the state.

He alleged that KCR is extremely superstitious, and pointed out how the Telangana CM's superstitious beliefs interfere in all decisions, including who to pick as a minister, who to drop, where to live, his office location, etc.

Behaving in this way, KCR is not only promoting superstition but also hindering social justice, he said.

Telangana is a hub of Information Technology but superstition is being promoted in this modern city, which is very sad, Modi said.

"Telangana has to be lifted out of backwardness by eliminating superstitions," he maintained.

Push to digital transactions and online payments have significantly reduced corruption, Modi said, underscoring that his flagship "tri-shakti" of Jan Dhan, Aadhaar and Mobile has enabled the Centre to remove all fake beneficiaries, and now the poor were receiving money directly into their accounts.

He said the opposition parties were trying to form a coalition as they were afraid of being probed for corruption.

Modi said while three crore houses have been built and given to the poor elsewhere in the country under the Centre's affordable housing scheme PM Awas Yojana, people of Telangana are being deliberately kept away from receiving its benefits.